Still the one: After 71 years of marriage, couple says 'I do' all over again

Friday

Feb 15, 2013 at 12:01 AM

STOCKTON - Dorothy and Jonnie Palmer had a rushed wedding ceremony in a hotel lobby in 1941, re-dedication vows described by their grandson as "short and sweet" on Thursday, and in between, more than 71 long years of joyful wedded bliss.

The Record

STOCKTON - Dorothy and Jonnie Palmer had a rushed wedding ceremony in a hotel lobby in 1941, re-dedication vows described by their grandson as "short and sweet" on Thursday, and in between, more than 71 long years of joyful wedded bliss.

The Palmers, residents of Atria Bayside Landing in Stockton, said it took a little arm-twisting for them to agree to retake their vows (the management wanted someone to honor on Valentine's Day), but they didn't really see the need, to hear them tell it.

"There've never really been any ups and downs, have there, hon?" Dorothy Palmer asked her husband. "No, not really" Jonnie Palmer replied.

They met in Santa Ana Canyon in Orange County back before the space age, Elvis and even WWII.

"The first time I saw him, I knew he was the one," Dorothy Palmer said. "Something just clicked. It wasn't too long after that we decided ... instead of being one we'd be two."

To get married not too long after that meeting, they rousted a judge from his sleep that April in 1941, and were married in a hotel lobby.

"We thought we'd be married on the 23rd," Dorothy Palmer said.

"It took us all day to finally find a justice of the peace," Jonnie Palmer remembered.

After 71 years, they are still in sync, sharing memories and a love that has seen - to hear them tell it - no ebbs and flows.

To grandson Michael Palmer, 44, of Sacramento, they're a living example of what love is all about. He's grown up observing "what a good loving relationship is about," he said. His grandparents "set a good example. I hope to strive to have that with my family."

As for the vows, Dorothy Palmer said retaking them was "very exciting, unusual."

They were fitting for a couple so wrapped up in each other that they forget about ever being single.